For some executives, profits are the be all, end all. That is the reason you are in business, they emphatically argue, to make profits. Nothing else matters.
Pardon me, but that is a large pile of El Toro Poo Poo, especially the “nothing else matters part.”
In business, it is not enough to be profitable. Profitability is actually an easier part of the success in the business formula. Delivering exceptional, defect-free service and profits is another matter.
My father was a great guy – perhaps a wee bit too devoted to his successful retail baking business, but he was, if nothing else in life is true, very consistent. He loved what he did and he did it very well. He taught me many lessons, some intentional, some not. But the one that has been my constant companion through the 24 years since he died is this: Do the right thing, produce the best product you can and deliver exceptional service. The profits will come.
In doing the right thing, healthcare executives must remember that we are indeed a business with a conscience. We must always remember that patients are not widgets that can talk.